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In a little-noted eulogy delivered after Lincoln's assassination, Frederick Douglass called the president emphatically the black man's president, the first to show any respect for their rights as men. Douglass pointed not just to Lincoln's official acts and utterances, like the Emancipation Proclamation or the Second Inaugural Address, but also to the president's own personal experiences with Black people. But Lincoln's description as emphatically the black man's president rests on more than his relationship with Douglass or on his official words and deeds. Lincoln interacted with many other African Americans during his presidency. His unfailing cordiality to them, his willingness to meet with them in the White House, to honor their requests, to invite them to consult on public policy, to treat them with respect whether they were kitchen servants or leaders of the Black community, to invite them to attend receptions, to sing and pray with them in their neighborhoods--all those manifestations of an egalitarian spirit justified the tributes paid to him by Frederick Douglass and other African Americans. Historian David S. Reynolds observed that only by examining Lincoln's personal interchange with Black people do we see the complete falsity of the charges of innate racism that some have leveled against him over the years.

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Michael Burlingame is the Chancellor Naomi B. Lynn Distinguished Chair in Lincoln Studies at the University of Illinois, Springfield. He is the author of Abraham Lincoln: A Life and The Inner World of Abraham Lincoln; he is also the editor of An Oral History of Abraham Lincoln: John G. Nicolay's Interviews and Essays and Lincoln's Journalist: John Hay's Anonymous Writings for the Press, 1860-1864. Burlingame has received a number of awards and accolades throughout his career, including the Abraham Lincoln Association Book Prize, the Lincoln Diploma of Honor from Lincoln Memorial University, and was inducted into the Lincoln Academy of Illinois. He currently resides in Springfield, Illinois. Tony Isabella has narrated over thirty audiobooks. His love for Shakespeare, fantasy, and hip-hop allows him to immerse himself in a wide range of material. He resides in New York, petting every dog he passes by. Matthew J. Harris is a New York based actor and narrator. Some of his favorite roles have been Booth in Topdog/Underdog directed by Billy Porter, and Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet. His television credits include Blue Bloods, Blindspot, and Person of Interest. He can also be heard and seen in commercials for Coke Zero, Verizon, Zaxby's, Footlocker, Bounty, and more.

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